When we stop to think about it, school is very much like a game that we are forced to play, and often can't wait for it to be over. People are constantly trying to earn the grades that will move them forward a few spaces on the game board, and they only do what they have to do to get to the end. Students spend a lot of time waiting for others to take their turn and trying to figure out the game themselves. Every game has tricks, and once those tricks are figured out, the game becomes simple. In school, it is often the same way. People who are desperate to get those As or perfect SAT scores spend a lot of their time trying to find ways to "cheat the system," and succeed by doing only what is required of them.
In my opinion, we have all played the game of school. There were nights in high school where I sat at my desk and simply thought "well, there is no way I can do all of this tonight." So, I would map out my time, trying to figure out what I had to do to get by. I would say "Okay, so I'll start with my response paper for religion, since I have to submit that online. Then, I'll do my math homework, because the teacher checks that. That will leave me two hours to study for history, since the test is tomorrow. I can skip the reading, because that seems to be busy work, and the teacher won't check that." This is similar to the children who had to come up with the response questions based on their reading. As soon as they found out that the teacher wouldn't check anything as long as they had the response question, they would just stop there (Fried 94). After seeing me stressed, even my own mom would say "Hayley, just do what you have to do, and then go to bed." Those stressful and seemingly impossible nights were not enjoyable, because I was just trying to play the game of school and do whatever I had to do to win it.
Its not easy to get out of this mindset. If a long reading is assigned, it is impulse to try to get it done quickly, which makes it hard to actually enjoy it. During my first month at URI, I have done a lot of reflecting on deep learning, and learning about myself and who I want to become. Now, in college, I see school more as a way to prepare me individually for my own future, rather than forcing a whole group of students to learn the same old basic facts. However, I still find myself seeing homework as a tedious task with a lot of reading and busy work. A personal goal of mine is to think deeply and critically about all of my work, rather than see it as a list of things that I have to complete before I can move on with my day.
In order to stop the game of school, students, teachers, and administrators are all going to have to work together, and it is by no means going to be easy. The phrase "I don't wanna do homework" is far too prevalent in today's modern culture. People see homework as part of the game; a step that they have to complete before they can move forward on the game board. Students are too concerned about pleasing the teacher, and teachers are too concerned about just teaching to get their money, without caring whether or not the students get As or Fs. The key to ending this game is mindset, and everyone has to reevaluate their own mindsets and open them up to make learning an experience, rather than a game.
In my opinion, we have all played the game of school. There were nights in high school where I sat at my desk and simply thought "well, there is no way I can do all of this tonight." So, I would map out my time, trying to figure out what I had to do to get by. I would say "Okay, so I'll start with my response paper for religion, since I have to submit that online. Then, I'll do my math homework, because the teacher checks that. That will leave me two hours to study for history, since the test is tomorrow. I can skip the reading, because that seems to be busy work, and the teacher won't check that." This is similar to the children who had to come up with the response questions based on their reading. As soon as they found out that the teacher wouldn't check anything as long as they had the response question, they would just stop there (Fried 94). After seeing me stressed, even my own mom would say "Hayley, just do what you have to do, and then go to bed." Those stressful and seemingly impossible nights were not enjoyable, because I was just trying to play the game of school and do whatever I had to do to win it.
Its not easy to get out of this mindset. If a long reading is assigned, it is impulse to try to get it done quickly, which makes it hard to actually enjoy it. During my first month at URI, I have done a lot of reflecting on deep learning, and learning about myself and who I want to become. Now, in college, I see school more as a way to prepare me individually for my own future, rather than forcing a whole group of students to learn the same old basic facts. However, I still find myself seeing homework as a tedious task with a lot of reading and busy work. A personal goal of mine is to think deeply and critically about all of my work, rather than see it as a list of things that I have to complete before I can move on with my day.
In order to stop the game of school, students, teachers, and administrators are all going to have to work together, and it is by no means going to be easy. The phrase "I don't wanna do homework" is far too prevalent in today's modern culture. People see homework as part of the game; a step that they have to complete before they can move forward on the game board. Students are too concerned about pleasing the teacher, and teachers are too concerned about just teaching to get their money, without caring whether or not the students get As or Fs. The key to ending this game is mindset, and everyone has to reevaluate their own mindsets and open them up to make learning an experience, rather than a game.